Rialto Square Theatre in Joliet reports possible first-ever profit in 2024

The Rialto Square Theatre turned an operating profit in 2024, maybe the first in the theater’s nearly century of existence, its director said Monday.

The Joliet theater’s financial progress was set back this past year by asbestos issues that led to canceled shows and weddings, but the theater could still break even on operations for 2025, Executive Director Wade Welsh said.

“In 2024, it was the first time we believe ... that the theater ever made a net operating profit,” Welsh told the Joliet City Council.

Welsh’s comments came in a presentation providing the council with an update on the Rialto.

The theater had a $214,745 net operating profit in the 2024 fiscal year, Welsh said.

“We’re pointed in the right direction operationally,” Welsh said.

The operating profit, however, does not reflect the capital costs of maintaining and renovating the theater, which ranges in the millions of dollars.

Last year’s asbestos cleanup cost $2 million, a cost not included in the projection that the theater could break even in 2025 on operations. The asbestos issue, however, did take some toll on the operational budget because of canceled events.

The 2025 fiscal year ended June 30 and included the months when the theater was closed for asbestos cleanup.

The Rialto, which opened in 1926, was a privately run theater for the first half-century of its existence. The theater closed before being taken over in 1978 by the Will County Metropolitan Exposition and Auditorium Authority.

Welsh said Rialto officials could not be certain of financial operations when the theater was under private ownership. But to the best that could be determined, the Rialto did not appear to have ever turned an operating profit, he said.

The operating profit is based on the financial results from staging events and running the theater.

The net profit does show that the Rialto is making money off of the events its stages, something which has not been the norm.

The theater still faces the financial challenge of spending millions for building upkeep, much of what is being done now with the help of state grant money.

The city of Joliet also provides a $475,000 annual subsidy to the Rialto used for capital projects.

Welsh noted that the net operating profit for 2024 did not include any of the income from city funding.